Off-pricers add pizzazz to cosmetics dept - store design

Off-pricers add pizzazz to cosmetics dept.

As this photo suggests, some deep discount drug store operators are making big strides in cosmetics and fragrances. Pictured is a revamped cosmetics/fragrance department in an A. L. Price store, featuring many of the upscale display and graphic elements which Perry Drug Stores also put into its "Store of the '90s" prototype. Perry sold A. L. Price to former F&M president Bill Edwards in June.

The redesigned departments feature 44 feet of fragrances, including prestige and designer labels, merchandised in glass showcases. Color cosmetics are given dramatic play on the store's perimeter, accented by recessed lighting, eye-catching graphics and suspended signage to highlight different brands.

The high margins and merchandising pizzazz that cosmetics and fragrances can bring to the retail party have lured other deep discounters as well. Phar-Mor was an early convert, giving the departments their own service islands and their own alcove settings at a perimeter of the stores whenever possible. Drug Emporium, meanwhile, has significantly expanded the space and selection for cosmetics and fragrances in remodeled and newer stores.

"We see tremendous opportunity in cosmetics," noted Ron Parrish, vp-operations at Drug Emporium.

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